A Very Potter Christmas
by pottermum
Summary: The Potter family are decorating their Christmas tree. Harry loves Christmas, Ginny's going balmy, James and Lily are teasing each other, and all ALbus wants is a bloody good snog from his boyfriend. Is that too much to ask? Written for the tumblr prompt by littlerose13, 12 days of Shipmas - Tree decorating.


This idea was from a Tumblr prompt, 12 Days of Shipmas. Albus and Scorpius are sixth years. Hope you enjoy it.

Albus stopped shovelling snow in the front driveway to listen to the sounds of arguing in the house. It was, after all, the reason he had volunteered for this mundane task. Well, that, and to wait for Scorpius to arrive.

He and his brother James had been woken early by their dad to go with him to Hogwarts. There they met up with Hagrid, who had led them to the best place to pick out their family Christmas tree. The rest of his family were inside now, getting ready to decorate it. Thus, the good natured arguing. Albus sighed; it was the same every year.

Albus thought fondly of his boyfriend, and he thanked fate for the unexpected overnight business trip that Scorpius' dad had to do two days before Christmas. Scorpius had owled Albus, who of course insisted that Scorpius come and stay at the Potters till Draco returned. They were all getting together Christmas night, anyway.

But now he had a whole extra day and night with Scorpius, and that made him smile. They'd only arrived home from Hogwarts the day before, and Albus already missed him terribly, and they had exchanged several owls. Albus treasured the letters Scorpius sent him, reading them over and over, especially the more naughty ones.

CRACK. As if thinking about him had made him appear, Scorpius arrived promptly at ten as he had said he would, and looked at the Potter's home, surprised to see Albus outside, shovelling snow. He looked amused as he came through the welcoming gate.

"Why on earth aren't you using magic?" asked Scorpius, waving his wand to make the snow disappear. He had recently turned seventeen, and could freely do magic. Albus wouldn't be seventeen until late January.

"Well, I could have done that but then I'd be forced to go back inside and get dragged into _that_ ," indicated Albus, turning to gesture behind him.

Scorpius paused and listened.

"Ow, Jamie, watch out, you nearly took my head off." That was Lily.

"Well, get out of my way, then," replied James.

"James, don't talk like that to your sister. Ginny, can't we -"

"No, Harry, for the hundredth time, the ornament goes there!" sighed Ginny.

Albus turned back to find Scorpius suddenly quite close to him. "Hi," he said breathlessly.

"Is it a bad time?" asked Scorpius anxiously. This time it was he who gestured behind Albus.

"No," sighed Albus. "This is pretty usual around here. You see, we're putting up our Christmas tree, and Mum likes to have things pretty much the same every year. And every year, we all try and get her to change things, which ends up in arguments and such. Don't worry, it's perfectly normal."

"Oh, good. Then, hi, Albus," replied Scorpius, looping his arms around Albus' shoulders. They leaned in to kiss when -

SPLAT. They quickly broke apart as they were hit by a snowball. Glancing at the door, they saw Lily grinning mischievously at them before she disappeared back inside.

"Mu-um," they heard her yell. "Scorpius is here, and he and Al are snogging in the driveway."

Scorpius chuckled self consciously but Albus frowned. "Well, trying to," he corrected underneath his breath.

The door flew open and Ginny and Harry Potter stepped out. Scorpius tried not to laugh as Ginny had tinsel around her neck and Harry had a tangled string of lights in his hand.

"Scorpius, hi, come in. Brr, it's so cold out here," said Ginny, beckoning them inside.

"Didn't mind sending _me_ out there," grumbled Albus, following Scorpius in to the warmth of the house.

"I thought you'd use magic and be done in seconds," answered Ginny, dryly.

"Are you encouraging me to do magic, Mum, me, a mere lad of sixteen?" teased Albus. "What would Aunt Hermione say?" His mother's cheeky look told him exactly what his aunt, the Minister for Magic, would say, and exactly how bothered by that Ginny was.

"Hello, Scorpius, your dad get off all right?" asked Harry, patting him on the shoulder.

Before Scorpius could assure Harry that his dad's Portkey had left on time, they heard more shouting.

"Not the green, Lil," said James. "Dad likes red."

Harry flung an arm around Ginny's shoulders and nuzzled her neck, fingering the hair at her nape."Yes, he does," he whispered, flirtily.

"Ugh, stop it," hissed Albus. "Every bloody time..."

Ginny turned to him, after smacking Harry's fingers away. "You," – she pointed at Albus – "language. You" – she pointed at Harry – "later. I need to get in there and sort things out. Merlin, I don't know what you lot would do without me," she muttered, walking to the lounge. The arguing instantly escalated.

"Come on," said Albus to Scorpius. "Mum wants a few things done in the den, nothing much. I volunteered us to get away from _that._ " He pointed to the lounge.

"Good call," noted Harry. He looked around to make sure Ginny wasn't close by, then leaned in to whisper, "your mother _is_ going a bit over the top this year." He looked around sheepishly.

"Er, my bag?" asked Scorpius awkwardly.

Harry banished it with his wand. "It's in Albus' room. You'll be sleeping in there tonight. I'm sure that won't be a problem for the two of you." He winked at the two then returned to the lounge.

"Dad," hissed Albus, mortified. Scorpius too, had flushed, a pale pink in his cheeks. "Come on," he urged pulling on Scorpius's coat sleeve. They still hadn't had their kiss hello.

Scorpius had been to the Potter's home before and this room, apart from the kitchen – and Albus' bedroom – was his favourite. It had comfy old lounges in there, board games, reading nooks and was where the family listened to the Quidditch matches on the wireless. It was homey and had a real feeling of family.

Scorpius looked around. "So what are we doing in here?"

Albus picked up a box of decorations. "Not much, Mum just wants some Christmassy stuff in here. We'll put it around, she'll come in here and move things, and we'll all live happily ever after."

"Lily, no, the stockings will go in order. How does _that_ even make sense – JLTAHG?" they heard Ginny ask. "It should be HGTJAL – Harry, Ginny, Teddy, James, Albus, Lily. "

Lily giggled. "James Loves Theresé And Heléna Gianetti! Get it?"

"Lily!" they heard James cry out, then, "Mu-um? Do something about her!"

"Lil, enough! Two girls, James?" asked Ginny, her eyebrows raised.

"They're sisters in Hufflepuff," confided Lily, gleefully.

"Twin sisters," corrected James, "and I don't _love_ them both." He used his wand to rearrange the letters – LSAHGTJ. "Ha, you forgot to include Scorpius. Lily Smells And... – he scrambled to come up with something – " Has Groped Tony Johnson," he cried victoriously.

"Oh, I do _not_ smell. Mum, tell him not to be mean," pleaded Lily.

"Merlin, I'm getting a headache, have you lot reverted to toddlers again all of a sudden – Harry, I saw you put those candles there. You _know_ that's where I like the reindeers to go," she sighed, rubbing her temples.

"I was just trying it there for something different," argued Harry.

"I don't want different, I want it right," said Ginny stubbornly. She used her wand to switch the reindeers and candles.

"I notice you didn't say anything about Tony Johnson," jeered James to Lily quietly, when Ginny went to Harry to point out – yet again – where she wanted things placed.

"That's because I'm ignoring you," replied Lily, haughtily.

"You can't, because I'm ignoring you first," answered James, determined not to let Lily get the last word.

"You can't ignore me first when I _said_ it first," said Lily, rolling her eyes.

"Sorry, did you say something. I can't hear you because I'm ignoring you," announced James, mockingly.

"Mu-um," whined Lily, "tell James -"

"No! You lot are driving me crazy. Lil, go and help your dad with the decorations on the tree, no Harry, I wanted the gold and silver ones there, and the red ones over there. James, I want the gold tinsel up there and there..."

Ginny's voice faded as Albus hurriedly closed the door. "Sorry about that," he said.

"It's fine, Albus. Nice to be included, actually," chuckled Scorpius.

"Wha-oh, yeah, right?" said Albus, realising James had added Scorpius to the list of family names. "What would your day be like at Malfoy Manor if your dad didn't have to go away?" he asked curiously.

Scorpius picked up some tinsel, draping it around the mantle. He looked at the many family photos that adorned it, thinking how cute little Albus was, holding baby Lily. "Well, our tree is done and so is my shopping, so I suspect Dad and I would have been reading and listening to carols on the wireless. Calm and" – he cringed as something fell and smashed – " quiet."

"James, you broke the angel," wailed Lily. "It was a gift from Aunt Minerva!"

"It can be fixed, Lil. Reparo," consoled Harry. "James, be a bit more careful, please."

Scorpius sniffed the air. "Hey, is something burning?"

 _Me, for you,_ thought Albus, still wanting his hello kiss. Then he too sniffed the air. "Mum, is something burning?" he called out.

"My biscuits," shrieked Lily, and they heard her run to the kitchen. "Dad, help," she cried. They heard Harry follow her to the kitchen.

Albus and Scorpius looked at each other, aware of the sudden quiet of the house. "So..." said Albus, taking a step towards Scorpius. "We never got to -"

"Say hello properly," finished Scorpius, softly. He took a step closer to Albus, whose heart was racing. When Scorpius used that tone of voice it usually meant -

"Right, that's it, everybody out, I'll finish the damn decorating myself."

"Uh-oh, Mum has reached her limits. She's snapped," said Albus, reluctantly stepping aside.

"Ginny love, come on, we were just having some fun," soothed Harry.

"Yeah, Mum, does it really matter if the blue tinsel goes there?" asked James.

"Of course it matters, it's -"

Whatever Ginny had been about to say, they would never know, because once again, there was a sudden silence. Albus and Scorpius held their breath, straining to hear something, but there was nothing. Albus decided to go see what was going on, and Scorpius followed.

"Gin, I love you but you're going a little bit crazy," said Harry, amused.

Ginny glared at him, struggling to move.

"What did you do?" gasped Albus, as he and Scorpius dared to enter the lounge. They both struggled to reign in their laughter.

"Dad did a silencing charm...on Mum!" said James, staring at Harry as if he was the bravest man in the world.

Ginny was tied to the chair with the aforementioned blue tinsel holding her in place. James placed the G stocking upside down on her head and when she opened her mouth to beseech Albus for help, Lily stuck a Christmas biscuit in her mouth, kissing her cheek. "Love you, Mum," she said cheerfully. With her eyes flashing Ginny proceeded to eat the biscuit...and eyed them all sharply.

"All right," said Harry, "now that your mum is _resting_ – he winked at Ginny, who narrowed her eyes at him – "let's get this decorating done." He rubbed his hands together. Christmas was Harry's favourite time of year, not least because all the family was together again. He began to put decorations out, ignoring Ginny's silent protests over certain placings.

"Er Dad, Scorpius and I haven't even started on the den, yet," said Albus, dying to be alone with his boyfriend.

James and Lily, arguments forgotten, teased them and made kissy noises. Albus rolled his eyes and grabbed Scorpius by the hand and pulled him away.

"Will your mum be really angry?" asked Scorpius, in concern. They took items out of the box and placed them hapahazardly around the room.

"Oh, sure," nodded Albus. "Hey." He placed his hand on Scorpius' arm at his boyfriend's crestfallen face. "It'll be fine, promise. Dad will kiss her " – he grimaced at the thought – "and make up and she'll be fine. This...this craziness, is, unfortunately, normal for us."

"I like it, it's so different to mine. Family teasing, Christmas and tinsel..." Scorpius draped some tinsel around Albus' neck and pulled him close. "So, did we ever -"

"Al, Scorp, how are you? Oops, did I interrupt something?"

Albus sighed, but refused to remove his hands from Scorpius' hips. "Yes, Teddy, you bloody did," he snapped at his godbrother.

"Hi, Teddy," said Scorpius nicely, to make up for Albus' rudeness.

Teddy didn't take offense, instead chuckling. "Gin going batty already? Seems like I missed all the fun." He sniffed. "Do I smell Christmas biscuits? Lil been cooking?"

"Yes, no and yes," replied Albus. "Yes, Mum's going batty already and yes, Lil's made biscuits. But no, you didn't miss all the fun yet. Dad hit Mum with a silencing spell, so it will be fun to see what happens when it wears off."

Teddy winced. "Ooh, I would _not_ want to be Harry. A galleon says we'll see her bat bogey hex. Guess I better go in there, I'll leave you to it." He grinned and winked as he left.

Albus sighed and leaned against Scorpius, feeling his heart beat strongly through his soft cashmere jumper. He felt Scorpius press a kiss to his forehead.

The door burst open and James came in. "Come on, lovebirds, the lounge is done, Teddy's here and we're getting out of here before Mum gets her voice back. A fly to the corner and back, you in?"

"No, go away, we've done nothing wrong, she won't yell at us" insisted Albus. Now that he and Scorpius were close, there was no way he was letting him go.

James shrugged. "Okay, but you know Mum." He left the door open, making Albus itch to spell it shut and seal it...permanently!

They heard the sound of laughter, feet shuffling and doors opening and closing, then nothing. They waited, and Albus pulled his head off Scorpius's chest and looked up at him. His lips were so close, so red, so perfect. He lifted his head and Scorpius lowered his. They were close, and both boys closed their eyes and –

"Nice work, boys."

They jumped apart to see a calm Ginny in the doorway, nibbling on a biscuit. She looked around in approval. "I never would have thought of putting that there, Albus. I like it. Oh, but didn't you forget something?"

Albus hadn't given the decorating a second thought, but Ginny used her wand and levitated something to the ceiling.

"Guess I'll leave you boys to it," she said, winking. She turned and left, humming, _'It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas.'_

"Why does everyone in my family wink at us," groaned Albus.

But Scorpius was looking up at the ceiling, and Albus looked up too.

"Mistletoe," he whispered, grinning at Albus.

"Probably full of Wrackspurts," guessed Albus, repeating an oft mentioned saying in the Potter house.

"What's a Wrackspurt?" asked Scorpius, frowning.

"You know what, who cares. Merry Christmas, Scorpius," announced Albus.

"It will be, because I'm here, with you," agreed Scorpius, lowering his head again.

As their lips were millimetres apart, they heard Harry return to the house. SLAM. "Gin, love, where are you?"

Lips so close together, Albus groaned in frustration. "No. No, no, no," he muttered. "No more interruptions, no!" Scorpius looked at him in wry amusement, feeling very much the same.

"Harry James Potter, I think you should -"

Silence.

"Your mum isn't having a good day, is she?" asked Scorpius, dryly. "Come on, let's go see if we can help."

"Rather stay here," pouted Albus, as Scorpius took his hand and led him to his own lounge. He gasped when they came across his parents. "Mum, Dad! Damnit!"

Harry and Ginny broke apart reluctantly. "Damn, I forgot they were still here," said Ginny. She licked her swollen lips.

"No, you two do _not_ get to snog. I have been trying to snog _my boyfriend_ since he arrived, and everyone is interrupting us," yelled Albus, feeling the urge to stamp his feet like a child.

"Er, you're the one doing the interrupting here, Al," noted Harry, amused, his arm draped over Ginny's shoulder.

"Yes, we're not stopping you," agreed Ginny. "I even gave you mistletoe. Maybe it _is_ full of Wrackspurts," she said thoughtfully.

"So you're not mad at Dad?" asked Albus. "For the silencing spell, for the blue tinsel, for the madness that is yet another Potter family Christmas."

Ginny shrugged. "He's too cute to stay mad at for long." Harry grinned and preened. "Besides, he got Lily and James out of my hair. Once they left, a simply switching spell and every decoration was right where I wanted it to be."

Scorpius looked impressed as he looked around the room. It looked wonderful, ready for the chaos of Christmas morning, for this was the room they opened their presents in. The tree stood grandly in the corner, and even Scorpius had to admit, it was decorated to perfection.

"Well, no more snogging," ordered Albus.

"Is that a rule now? Because I don't like it," said Ginny, crossing her arms.

"No, you" – he pointed at his parents – "no more snogging in front of guests, or, or...I'll tell Uncle Ron!" he announced.

"Pfft, go ahead, give him a heart attack for Christmas. Besides, Scorpius is family, not a guest," corrected Ginny.

"Really?" beamed Scorpius.

"Really," affirmed Ginny and Harry together.

Albus felt a thrill that his parents had said that, knowing what it would mean to Scorpius. "Well, we're going to find somewhere quiet to snog," he announced, thinking of the attic.

"Don't go to the attic," warned Ginny, "try the back porch swing. Oh, and don't forget a certain charm."

" _Mother!_ " gasped Albus.

"I meant a warming charm, Albus," chided Ginny. "Why, what charm were _you_ thinking of?" She twirled her wand and her eyes twinkled mischievously, and Albus realised why her brothers feared being on the wrong side of his mother's wand.

"Come on, Gin," chuckled Harry, taking her hand. "Why don't you boys go back to the den. Gin, love, _we'll_ use the back porch swing."

"Good idea, I do like the rocking motion," grinned Ginny, letting Harry lead her away.

Albus wanted to die of embarassment. "Don't forget the charm," he mimicked.

"Which one?" teased Harry.

 _Kill. Me. Now._ "All of them," groaned Albus. He heard them laughing, then the house was blessedly empty. He turned to find Scorpius' heated gaze on him. "Alone at last," he quipped.

Scorpius stepped forward, cupped Albus' face in both his hands and kissed him like never before. Albus' eyes opened wide, before he sunk into the kiss, his hands roaming Scorpius' hips and bum.

"Oh, hello. Don't let me stop you."

Albus could not believe his day. He groaned, and smiled tightly, pulling away reluctantly to look at the visitor. "Aunt Luna, what are you doing here?"

"Your mum said you were going to put your Christmas tree up, so I thought I should come over and check your mistletoe for Nargles," explained Luna.

"I thought it was Wrackspurts," said Scorpius, confused.

"Oh dear, I may be too late," frowned Luna. "If you boys have been affected by Nargles, there's only one thing to do."

Albus groaned. He didn't want to take a potion, or have to go to St Mungo's, this was _his_ time with his boyfriend.

"What is it?" asked a worried Scorpius.

"You'll simply have to keep kissing till it wears off," shrugged Luna. "Where are Harry and Ginny?"

"Snogging out on the back porch swing," said Albus.

Scorpius was sure Luna would be shocked but she simply nodded. "Of course, they'd already know the antidote." She sniffed the air. "Oh, Did Lily make Christmas biscuits? My clever goddaughter."

"Yeah, help yourself," said Albus, relieved.

Luna began to softly sing, _'Nigel the big nosed Niffler,',_ as she headed for the kitchen.

"Well, you heard what Luna said. We'll just have to keep snogging," shrugged Albus. He took Scorpius' hand and led him back to the den, where they curled together in the reading nook.

"Albus?" Scorpius brushed Albus' messy hair off his face.

"Hmmm." Albus leaned into Scorpius' touch, nuzzling against Scorpius' neck.

"Let's always have mistletoe in _our_ house. Mistletoe full of Nargles and Wrackspurts," chuckled Scorpius. "And we'll hang stockings, make Christmas biscuits, and have fun decorating _our_ tree."

"Always," agreed Albus, thrilled to realise he and Scorpius both knew they were in this for the long haul.

There was no more talking after that.

For Albus, it was the best Christmas ever, and the first of many wonderful Christmases he and Scorpius would share with their families and friends.

And that is what Christmas is all about!

~ _ **I shall do the PC version and wish you all Happy Holidays!~**_


End file.
